Scotland take on Brazil in the final game of Group C on Wednesday evening at 11pm UK time, knowing a point or three at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami should guarantee automatic advancement to the round of 32.
Defeat can also see Steve Clarke’s side progress with 3rd place assured thanks to the victory over Haiti meaning they are unable to leapfrog Scotland on head to head rules, although it would leave an anxious wait throughout the rest of the week to remain one of the eight best ranked third placed nations.
Brazil top the group currently, having drawn with Morocco 1-1 on the first match day but creating daylight between the two on goal difference by beating Haiti 3-0 on the same day the Moroccans defeated the Scots just 1-0.
The World Cup masters are now managed by Carlo Ancelotti, with the Italian being one of 26 men in the dugout of a country they are not from at this summer’s tournament.
Scotland have faced Brazil at the World Cup more times than they have faced anyone else, with this week’s meeting set to be the fifth occasion the two teams compete after previously faring off against one another in 1974, 1982, 1990 and 1998. Besides a 0-0 draw in 1974, Brazil have won every other fixture by a combined score of 7-2.
Yet despite only mustering three shots on target so far this summer, Scotland have a marginally higher xG than Brazil, recording 2.1 to Brazil’s 2.0. And down the other end of the park, Scotland have a xG against to 1.8 to the Brazilian’s 1.9.
But if history tells us anything, it is that Brazil have a better chance of scoring on Wednesday than anyone. They have scored a record high of 241 goals in tournament history, appeared in every iteration of the World Cup, and won it five times, more than any other country.
John McGinn scored Scotland’s only goal from first two games, whilst Vinicius Jr and Matheus Cunha evenly share Brazil’s four successful strikes against Morocco and Haiti.
Neymar is set to play a role on Wednesday, with the Santos winger returning back to full fitness after missing the first two ties.
He still holds the record for the highest transfer fee paid for one player after his move to PSG in 2017, and will be looking to add to his 8 goals scored at a FIFA World Cup.
However, Scotland may be able to take some solace from the fact that Brazil’s last qualifying game ended in a 1-0 defeat to Bolivia, a side swept aside by the Scots 4-0 on U.S soil on the cusp of the tournament beginning.
No Scotland side has ever made it through a group stage of any major international tournament, hoping to break their unwanted record of most World Cup campaigns without surpassing the groups this summer on the ninth attempt.
It is the biggest version of the World Cup since its conception, and Scotland know they might not get a chance to redeem all those years of hurt for another 28 years if they are unable to do so this summer.
